There’s A Truck IN The Road

[Accra, Ghana – 01 October, Saturday, 0930 GMT] The ministry venues are all finished. Since leaving home on Tuesday, 13 September our teams have spoken in 116 separate venues and recorded 18,194 indicated, first-time decisions for Christ. In addition we have established four new churches in areas where no there was no evangelical presence. Thanks unto Jesus for His marvelous grace!

After speaking to nine school groups on Friday, Jeff and I left Anyinam on Friday afternoon for our return trip to Accra. The trip proved to be an adventure. Only an hour into our journey we came upon a huge traffic jam caused by a collapse in the road. Upon inspection we discovered that a tractor-trailer had actually broken through the pavement in a sinkhole and was halfway submerged in the hole. There were many people trying to off load the cargo onto another truck, but the road was totally blocked. The locals told us that the process would take all day and well into the night so our driver made the decision to find an alternate route to Accra.

We turned the vehicle around and backtracked looking for a bush road that would get us around the mess. This decision proved to be foolish in that we were not the only ones attempting this move! After setting still on the clogged bush path for a good while, we were able to again turn around and look for another option. This time we actually took a path that had just been created by other vehicles and drove through knee-deep mud (four-wheeling our way) until we reached the main road again. All in all this process took us about three hours to travel approximately 20 miles!

Once back on the paved road we were traversing steep mountain roads from Koforidia to Aburi. These roads proved to be a strain on our Land Rover, which over heated as we were nearing the top of one of the ridges. We stopped near the summit and discovered that our newly installed fan belt was slipping and a coupling in the cooling system had loosened, causing us to loose water from radiator. In addition to this, the vehicle was acting as if we had a thermostat malfunction. Now, in the middle of the remote mountains, in the ever-increasing darkness, we felt hopeless. After approximately an hour we had found some water for the engine, prayed earnestly, and set out again for the remainder of our trip to Accra. By God’s grace, the vehicle never again over-heated (or even indicated above normal on the gauge.) We arrived in Accra around 8:30pm. This means that it took us over six hours to travel the 100 miles from Anyinam!

This has been a difficult project for us, experiencing the most ever mechanical problems, but God has proved so very faithful. Each time something went wrong with one of our vehicles we were reminded how much worse it could have been. The timing of each obstacle was perfect to reveal to us the protective hand of God.

As I sit here in my hotel room, sipping a cup of great coffee, I am reminded of how gracious God has been to all of us. Back here in Accra, Jeff and I have enjoyed a great night’s sleep in an Air Conditioned room. The breakfast buffet was wonderful. Honestly the greatest benefit of being back here is the hot shower. It feels like the first time I have been clean in a month.

Thinking about this, I am reminded of, and thankful for, the blessings God showers upon us day-by-day. I think we take for granted the “little” things in life we have come to expect. When was the last time you thanked God for a shower, a cup of coffee, or a good night’s sleep? Let me encourage you all to be thankful for the things you take for granted.

Jeff and I are scheduled to fly from Accra to Frankfurt tonight. We leave Germany on Monday afternoon and will arrive back in Charlotte in the evening. On behalf of the entire team in Ghana, I wish to say THANK-YOU for your prayerful support. We look forward to sharing more with you when we arrive home.